


The Bad Side of Diplomatic Meetings

by moretrash



Series: Dads of Marmora [23]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Big Brother Matt, Big Brother Shiro (Voltron), But its only mentioned, Confort Measures, Dads of Marmora (Voltron), Hunk is a good friend, Lactose Intolerant Keith (Voltron), Matt and Shiro are the best, Protective Paladins, harrassment
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-24
Updated: 2018-04-24
Packaged: 2019-04-27 02:04:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,489
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14415288
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/moretrash/pseuds/moretrash
Summary: Keith hates diplomatic meetings. Thank the lord for the best friends he could ever ask for and his four protective dads.





	The Bad Side of Diplomatic Meetings

**Author's Note:**

> From an ask from guardianofsillvennium on tumblr:
> 
> "If you're still taking requests, what about Dads of Marmora and Keith are at a political event for the coalition, and there's an a-hole alien that's making Keith really uncomfortable (for wearing one of his dresses or because he's a half breed or something) and makes him tear up and not only do the dads get protective and aggressive but the Paladins unsheath their bayards and the lions are growling and everyone just wants Keef to be happy and safe."

Diplomatic meetings passed slowly for Keith, usually. He had never done a whole lot of talking during the meetings. Even when he was a paladin, most of the talking was done by Shiro and Allura. His duty was to behave during the meeting and interact with the people of the planet at the feast for party that was usually held afterwards. Now that he was a blade, his duties were much the same. Most of the talking went to Kolivan, he simply had to interact with the partygoers. Even that was limited now, to his relief. Because he was a kit by Galra standards, no one really questioned him leaving the party early. If it ran late, he was taken back to the ship they came on or to a room to sleep by one of his pack members by the time he usually went to bed.

They were boring events, overall.

Usually.

-

From the moment he and his pack had landed, Keith was getting a weird sort of feeling from the inhabitants of this particular planet. He couldn’t quite place the feeling, but he felt extremely on edge around the aliens.

He made an effort to stick close to this pack. If he couldn’t stick close to his pack, then he stuck near the paladins. None of them seemed to notice this behavior; after all, it was normal for Keith to stick near people who were familiar to him. He had done it on Earth, while he was a paladin, and he still did it as a blade. Lance was more than happy to have any excuse to be near Keith.

Keith couldn’t shake the feeling that he was being watched. It was like someone was glaring at him constantly. He tries to shrug it off; the creatures were small, he could easily fight one off if it came to it. Besides, he had people he could rely on to protect him, now.

Keith wouldn’t lie when he said that the realization sent such a warm feeling through him that he felt lightheaded for a split second. It was a nice thought.

-

Keith felt out of element, in all honesty.

His pack and the paladins had been invited out of the banquet hall for formal discussions. Keith could have come if he wanted, but he wasn’t in the mood to hear about diplomatic talk. Plus, he was tired, and he didn’t want to look rude by falling asleep in the meeting.

He wished he hadn’t. People swarmed around Keith and talked and mingled, and Keith had felt his heart stop several times due to his nerves. He had no one to lean back on, at that moment. Well, that wasn’t entirely true. If he used his communicator to call a member of his pack or one of his friends, he had no doubt that that they or all of his friends would come running to his aid (yet another thought that made his warm up inside).

Keith tried to stick to the outskirts of the room, pressing against the wall and observing. But, he didn’t want to be rude when one of the aliens came up to him and tried to talk to him.

“Hello.” They said, their voice as high-pitched as all the other aliens. 

“Um… hello.” Keith said, feeling his shoulders draw up defensively. He never felt comfortable at large gatherings. He had very specific memories of Shiro having to reassure a younger version of Keith that being a wallflower at a party was okay, to ignore anyone who said otherwise because at least Keith was trying to put himself out there to the other Garrison students, and that Shiro would always get Keith out of a social situation he didn’t want to be in.

“Hybrid.” The alien stated bluntly, staring up at Keith with eyes that seemed to bore into his soul. Keith was about to ask how they could tell so easily, but he remembered there were a few very distinct differences between full-blooded and hybrid Galra. Full Galra had pure yellow eyes, while hybrids had yellow eyes and colored irises. Full Galra were tall while hybrids tended to take on the body type of their non-Galra kind. Full Galra ears were stiff like a cat’s, while hybrids had ears that were similar to a labrador in the idea that they were floppy and easily manipulated into folding back. 

“Uh… yeah. Why?” Keith asked. The alien’s soul-searching gaze turned to a glare, which really was quite comical on such a small being. It was like watching a child getting mad at an adult. 

“Are you aware that the Galra have been colonizing the entire universe?” The alien said. Keith couldn’t help but think that the being was similar to a condescending elementary school teacher, who talked down to their young students as if they knew absolutely nothing.

“Yeah, I’m aware of that. Been aware of it for a while now.” Keith said simply.

“Yet you are here trying to make allies with our kind when your blood contains that of the same that has kept us captive for deca-pheobes?” They said. Keith took a deep breath and tried to remember Shiro’s ‘patience yields focus’ mantra.  
“Yes, actually, I am. I believe what the Galra are doing are wrong, and I want to help stop it.” Keith said firmly. He had learned long ago, before space, before Voltron, that being firm in his words helped in arguments.

“That is not true. I can see right through your lies, Galra. You are on their side. You are spying.” The alien said. Keith resisted the urge to growl. It would hurt more than help at that moment.

“I am telling the truth. My Galra parent was a member of a Galra resistance group that has the goal of fighting the empire. And I have joined as well.” Keith said. 

“Lies, Galra. Galra are not welcome here.” The alien said. Keith blinked.

“Okay… then what about the Galra that just left for formal discussions?” Keith questioned, tilting his head.

“A ridiculous decision by the leader of my people. She does not realize they have ulterior motives.” They said. Keith was starting to think that this particular individual was just biased against Galra. Really, Keith couldn’t blame them, he would be too if Galra had held his people under their control for centuries.

“Please leave me alone. I would rather not debate a useless argument.” Keith said softly. Without knowing it, his hand had started to inch towards the pocket that housed his communicator. This was not a situation he wanted to be in. He wanted to call his friends.

As though sensing what Keith wanted to do, the alien’s hand darted forward and snatched the communicator out of Keith’s pocket, holding it out of reach. Keith felt his heart stop. If he couldn’t get that back, he had no way to contact his friends short of busting into a meeting room. Keith could easily snatch the communicator back, but he didn’t want to risk the alliance.

-

Shiro felt like something was off. He knew it had to do with Keith, because he only felt the same off feeling when Keith was nearby and distressed. One glance at Matt told him that he felt the same way. Shiro and Matt had become Keith’s older brother figures after Shiro jad introduced Matt to the younger boy. Matt, ever the big brother at heart, had all but immediately taken Keith under his wing. 

Matt knew something was wrong. It was a talent he called “big brother instinct”. He had sharpened this sixth sense ever since he first caught wind of Pidge being bullied in school. He always knew when something was off, and was armed with a sweet treat, open ears and open arms for his little sibling whenever they needed it. Things hadn’t really changed when he met Keith. In a lot of ways, Keith reminded him of Pidge. Hot-tempered and teased at school for being a bit more academically inclined. When he had gotten close to Keith, his sixth sense had expanded to include Keith, and he was armed with Keith’s favorite brand of cookies from the vending machine at the end of the hall, open ears and a warm blanket when Keith was feeling out of sorts. He would have hugged Keith more often, but the younger boy never really was comfortable with a lot of touching, and Matt wasn’t about to make him feel forced into something.

He and Shiro made their way out of the meeting room as soon as the meeting was over. They knew, somewhere in their hearts, that Keith was not entirely okay. They may just be overreacting, but they wanted to be sure. It was their job as his older brother figures. Matt and Shiro had taken on the role after Keith had confessed that he never really had a family, that he was in foster homes before the Garrison. Matt was sure that the confession hadn’t been intentional, Keith had been out of it and tired after his fever broke after a bad bout of flu that wiped out a majority of the Garrison population. Even so, Matt was quick to assure Keith that even if no one else was, he and Shiro were his family from then on.

-

When Shiro walked into the banquet hall, his eyes shot over to Keith as though it were the most natural thing in the world. Keith was standing against a wall, talking with one of the aliens. From a glance, it looked like a normal conversation. But Shiro knew better than that. He could see the way Keith was tensed up, ready to take flight and run the first chance he got. He then realized that the alien had Keith’s communicator, otherwise he would have questioned why Keith didn’t call someone if he was so uncomfortable. 

Shiro stalked over, not surprised when he heard a couple others in tow. He couldn’t quite place it, but he knew one of the figures was Lance and another was Kolivan from the worried “is he okay? Kolivan, that doesn’t look normal. Is he okay?” from Lance and a reassuring “he will be fine. The kit is just uncomfortable but I sincerely doubt there will be lasting problems.” from Kolivan. 

“Give his comm back, please.” Shiro said when he was standing behind the alien. They jumped and flipped around, glancing up at Shiro. They looked defiant for a moment before noticing the black paladin armor and tossed the communicator to Keith, who narrowly avoided dropping it. Lance slipped behind Keith and wrapped him in a hug, kissing his cheek in greeting.

“Why did you even have his comm, anyway? He clearly didn’t want you to have it.” Pidge piped up, climbing onto Kolivan’s shoulders to be seen more easily since they were about as tall as the planet’s inhabitants. Kolivan didn’t seem to mind the fact that he now had a small human perched on his shoulders. On the contrary, he simply wrapped his hands around Pidge’s ankles and uttered a warning to hang on and be careful so they didn’t fall off. Keith thought it was a testament to how much the paladins had come to trust Keith’s pack.

“He was trying to call for help instead of defending himself.” the alien said. Keith tensed and made a choked sound of protest. Thace reached forward and patted Keith’s shoulder.

“Kit? Can you explain what happened so we know what we can do?” Thace asked. His voice made it clear that Keith didn’t have to talk if he didn’t want to. 

“They came up to me and started talking about how I’m a spy because I’m Galra, and how I’m really on the empire’s side. I tried to call one of you, like you said to, but then they took my comm.” Keith said. Even with just the short summary, rage could be felt from every single person that Keith was close to. 

“Yeah, no, there will be no alliance. With any of us.” Allura said firmly, handing Keith a drink. Lance reached around Keith and helped him steady the glass enough to drink when he noticed that Keith’s hands were shaking slightly. The alien sputtered with rage. Allura ignored them.

“Kolivan, perhaps we should head back to the castle for the night. The lounge will prove to be ample room to make a temporary nest. I doubt that any of the paladins want to leave Keith’s side right now.” Allura said. Kolivan nodded in agreement and started off to the castle, everyone else in tow. 

“Keith, why don’t we try and convince Hunk to make that edible cookie dough for us all?” Matt suggested. Hunk laughed from a few steps away from them.

“I was already planning on it. Keith, am I right in assuming you’re lactose intolerant?” Hunk asked. Keith glanced up, surprised.

“Um, yeah, how’d you know?” Keith asked. 

“You always get sick when you have anything with cream or dairy in it. It wasn’t hard to figure out.” Hunk said, shrugging. “I’ll try to find a dairy-free substitute for milk.” he said. Keith smiled.

“You really don’t have to do that. I’ll be fine.” Keith said. Hunk shook his head, but Shiro spoke up before he could.

“Keith, no. No trying to dismiss your genuine health concerns to appease everyone else. We don’t mind, buddy. We understand that sometimes, there are health things out of your control. If we can help, we will. Finding a lactose-free substitute to milk is one way we can help.” Shiro explained.

“What exactly is… lactose intolerance?” Ulaz asked.

“Basically, its a really common human affliction. Not everyone has it, but a lot do. Dairy products like cheese or milk on Earth have a thing called lactose in it. To break it down, the body makes enzymes called lactase to break it down. Lactose intolerance is when the body doesn’t make any lactase or doesn’t make enough, and it causes stomach pain.” Pidge explained from their place on Kolivan’s shoulders. Ulaz nodded. He and Thace ran off to gather blankets and other nesting materials. Pidge carefully climbed off of Kolivan and sat down, yawning. Keith snickered.

“You’re tired already? I thought the tech gremlin never slept. Its not even my bedtime yet.” Keith said. 

“You have a bedtime?” Pidge asked incredulously. Keith nodded.

“Well, yeah. You keep forgetting I’m a toddler in Galra terms. Its nice, though. Besides, you’d have an earlier bedtime. You’re younger than me.” Keith said. Antok perked up.

“Younger? How old are you, green paladin?” Antok asked.

“Fifteen.”

“And the yellow and blue paladins?” Lance answered that one.

“Both seventeen.”

“The black paladin?”

“Shiro?” Keith glanced around. For whatever reason, Shiro was gone.

Well, he’d be back in time for cookie dough. That man had a sweet tooth bigger than Hunk and Keith combined.


End file.
